A kitchen midding is found

The Mejlgård kitchen midden is located near the northern coast of Djursland, Jutland. An archaeologist by the name of Worsaae conducted excavations in area in 1850 and 1851. The digs helped him understand that it was a special type of coastal settlement. Further digs …

The Mejlgård kitchen midden is located near the northern coast of Djursland, Jutland. An archaeologist by the name of Worsaae conducted excavations in area in 1850 and 1851. The digs helped him understand that it was a special type of coastal settlement. Further digs were conducted in 1880, 1888 and the 1960s and '70s. The kitchen midden is one of Denmark's biggest, measuring 125 metres long, up to 30 metres wide and as deep as 1.2 metres. It is made up primarily of oyster shells, and much of the contents date from the Mesolithic Period (Ertebølle Culture). Finds from the thin top layer can be dated to the late Neolithic Age (Funnel Beaker Culture).

A trash heap of historic significance

During the mid-19th century, one of the hot topics of discussion among archaeologists was whether the layers of shells, antiquities and food remains found along the coasts were natural geological deposits or had been left there by humans. In an attempt to answer that question, an interdisciplinary committee, the First Kitchen Midden Commission, was established. The commission was made up of archaeologists and scientists. At that time, it was a unique archaeological research initiative in an international perspective. At the same time it was also the start of a tradition of focused and productive research in Denmark. Later Mejlgård studies have shown that the site was occupied during the Ertebølle Period (4600-4000 BC), and briefly during the Neolithic Period (3900-3700 BC), also known as the Funnel Beaker Culture.